Chapter 4
"Oh my god," Darcy groaned. "How many times are you going to make me say it? I don't know what happened to Jane, I don't know how she attacked your officers, and I don't know where she is!"
The detective—sorry, detective inspector, as he kept correcting her—sitting across from Darcy didn't even blink at her outburst. Totally, one-hundred percent unimpressed. Darcy sighed and let her head fall forward onto the table with a thud. This day couldn't get any worse. First of all, nobody had heard from Selvig. Dude just dropped off the face of the Earth. Then her boss-lady goes MIA for hours and hey, just because Darcy's paid to be there doesn't mean she doesn't actually care about them both. Then Jane shows up just long enough to magically whammy the cops and their cars before being whisked away in the godly arms of her boyfriend and leaving Darcy and the intern to answer for it all. Nice, huh?
The inspector, whose name was so boring it refused to stick in her memory, hadn't changed posture at all in the last hour. He remained leaning back in his chair, arms folded across his plain dress shirt and even plainer necktie, with an expression of bland disapproval on his face. "What were you doing in the warehouse?"
"Looking for gravity stuff," Darcy answered without lifting her head off the table.
"Gravity stuff."
"Yup."
"What sort of... gravity stuff... would that be?"
"I don't know. I'm not a scientist. I just work for one."
"You've worked for Doctor Foster for nearly two years."
"So?"
"In all that time, you didn't bother learning what it is she does?"
Okay, interrogation was bad enough, but now it was patronizing interrogation. Darcy was not getting paid enough to deal with this. She lifted her head just far enough to look him in the eye. "Dude, seriously? There are about five people on the planet who understand Jane's science and you, me, and this whole department put together wouldn't equal one of them. It's not that I didn't bother, it's that theoretical astrophysics is a little beyond me."
The guy just raised an eyebrow in response, which seemed about as extreme a facial expression as he could make. Darcy leaned forward again and hit her head a few times on the table. On the third bounce, a thought occurred to her as if dislodged from the recesses of her memory by the impact.
"Hey, I'm not a legal expert but I'm pretty sure you can't hold someone without charging them. So either get to it, or let me go."
He opened his mouth to respond but a loud knock at the door interrupted. "What?"
The door opened and a uniformed officer poked his head in. "Sorry, Inspector Shipton. There's someone to see you. About them." On the last word, the officer nodded in Darcy's direction.
"Please let it be Thor," she muttered to herself. Or maybe not quite to herself. Both Shipton and the other officer were giving her weird looks.
"Tell him to wait," Shipton said.
"Sorry, sir, but I can't."
"Why not?" Darcy and Shipton asked at the same time, earning her another raised eyebrow.
The officer pushed open the door fully, revealing a man behind him wearing an impeccable black suit, who said, "Because my jurisdiction is a little broader than yours."
Shipton got to his feet. "And who might you be?"
"Agent Phil Coulson, of the Strategic Homeland Intervention and Enforcement Logistics Division."
"That's quite the mouthful."
Coulson smirked. "We know." He walked in and handed a folded up piece of paper to the inspector. Darcy craned her neck but couldn't see what it said from where she sat. "This woman is in our agency's employ, working on a classified project under Doctor Foster. We'll handle everything from here."
Shipton started reading. "This only addresses the trespassing. One of my men was hurt in the altercation. Not to mention the damage done to our vehicles."
"We're aware of the other damages. Arrangements are being made to finance repairs for the vehicles. Your officer is being seen," Coulson paused to check his watch, "right now by a specialist flown in from Germany. He'll receive the best available care."
"You flew in a specialist," Shipton said slowly, something approximating surprise beginning to show on his face. "For a concussion and a few broken ribs."
"Like I said, the best available care."
The almost surprised look on Shipton's face took on a hint of the dubious. "This all sounds a bit preposterous."
"Feel free to confirm it with the Commissioner of Scotland Yard."
Darcy snickered. It was funny enough to her that Scotland Yard existed for real outside of the Conan Doyle stories but now she suddenly had the mental image of Coulson as Sherlock and Shipton as Lestrade. The dopey Lestrade from the books, that is, not the more competent (and much hotter) BBC version.
"The directive was also co-signed by the heads of both the Security Service and the SIS," Coulson went on. "I believe there's instructions on how to contact them if you need further confirmation."
Shipton read the paper again. The whole paper. Again. "You know, I've never heard of the Strategic Homeland-"
"Just call us SHIELD, and no, you wouldn't have," Coulson told him. "I can wait if you want to go make those phone calls."
The two men engaged in a stare down. Shipton had to be at least a little pissed that SHIELD was booting him off his own case but his expression only changed from mildly dubious to slightly irked.
"I don't think that will be necessary," he said finally. "You're free to go, miss."
"Ms. Lewis, follow me," Coulson said.
Darcy didn't have to be told twice. This was the first thing today to go right and she wasn't going to stick around any longer than she had to in case they went sideways again. She shot out of her seat and made for the door, pausing just long enough to throw a little farewell salute to the inspector. Coulson stepped back to let her pass into the hallway. The intern was waiting outside and from his jittery posture, he was anxious about something. If she didn't get paid enough to deal a disappearing boss and an arrest, he for sure didn't. She was surprised he hadn't bolted already. She was even more surprised when he lunged forward and put his arms around her instead.
"Um, okay. What's this about?" Darcy asked. He let go and jumped back so suddenly it was like he'd received an electric shock.
"I-I-I was worried about you," he stammered in a rush.
"Yeah, right."
"I was."
He said it with such earnestness that it stopped Darcy dead in her tracks. And the way he looked at her, like he thought he'd never see her again. Clearly, Ian had never been arrested before, which could explain his nerves—because come on, nobody really goes to jail for trespassing—but that wasn't all it was. He wasn't just afraid. He was afraid for her.
Unfortunately, she didn't have much time to think about it because Coulson stepped between them with a, "If you two are finished..."
He led them to another room where they collected their personal effects before he herded them out the station's front doors and into a big black SUV that just screamed 'American government vehicle' and that looked totally out of place among the smaller European cars. It was only after Darcy climbed in the back that she noticed someone sitting in the passenger seat.
"Erik!" she all but shouted. "Where have you been? Jane called you like seventeen times."
Selvig smiled ruefully. "It was more like seven, but I take your point."
"And?"
"I got arrested."
"So did we!" Ian exclaimed like an excited puppy.
Erik chuckled. "So I noticed."
"For what?" Darcy demanded.
"They thought I was vandalizing Stonehenge."
Darcy blinked, trying to parse that sentence while Coulson climbed into the driver's seat. Once inside, he turned around to face them. "So, who wants to explain how three out of four members of one of our elite science teams got arrested on the same day? And where is Doctor Foster?"
"You may as well start driving," Darcy told him as he sat back and put her seat belt on. "It's a long story."
~~~|~~~
God, this is uncomfortable, Jane thought as Loki and Odin marched her and Thor from the infirmary to some kind of archive room. The tension was so thick between the men the air was almost vibrating with it. She kept catching herself holding her breath, waiting for the explosion that had to be coming. Everywhere she looked she saw some new piece of technology that she couldn't even ask about, afraid that if she even opened her mouth, one of her Asgardian escorts would combust.
Directly in front of her was Loki. Jane couldn't explain why it suddenly felt like he was a lot taller than he was the last time they met. Even with his back turned she couldn't shake the feeling he was looming over her somehow. He was certainly giving off a disconcerting vibe. From the moment he walked in the door of the infirmary he sounded angry, and his mood hadn't improved any since then. It got worse once he realized what was inside her. it felt like he was blaming her for something but she had no idea what. Maybe it was her own curiosity that got her into this mess but why would that be his problem? And try as she might, she couldn't recall anything she'd said or done in their previous brief interactions that would inspire such animosity. Surely Thor would have told her if she had, wouldn't he?
Her musings on the subject were derailed the moment she set foot inside the archive. In the center of the room was a huge tree that stretched all the way up to a ceiling so high she couldn't actually see it. It had branches and leaves like an ordinary tree but it was anything but. Along nine of its largest limbs were what appeared to be swirling galaxies. Holographic representations, she assumed, but more lifelike than any hologram she'd ever seen. Not even Tony Stark's projections looked so real. With a jolt, she remembered a drawing Thor made her once, showing how the Nine Realms were connected. At the time she thought the term 'World Tree' was a figure of speech. She now realized the truth, from Thor's perspective at least, might be a bit more literal.
Jane could have quite happily stood there all day, examining every detail of every branch, but Odin's voice filtered through her awestruck thoughts, reminding her of the problem at hand. He was saying something about ancient relics.
"Uh, I'm sorry. Could you repeat that?"
The king glanced at her over his shoulder looking vaguely peeved. Jane looked at Thor for help and he gave her an apologetic smile and gestured for her to be patient. While on Earth, it was easy to forget who Thor really was. He had such an easygoing personality that he seemed like a regular guy. One with a terribly refined vocabulary, but a regular guy all the same. She'd have to remember that he was more than that here. She was dealing with royalty, princes and a king, and kings were not used to the attention of their subjects wandering while they spoke.
Odin led them to a dimly lit side room where he pulled several massive volumes off a shelf and laid them out on the table. Over their heads, a light fixture turned on by itself casting a dull glow over them. As Jane looked up, she realized the term might be inaccurate. Though it was too dark to tell for sure, she couldn't actually see anything fixing the light to the ceiling. Maybe there was and she just couldn't see it? It could be disguised by some kind of phase shifting technology. If the fixture itself was exactly 180 degrees out of phase with Asgard's visible light spectrum–
Focus, Jane!
She wrenched her attention back to the present, embarrassed at being distracted by what for Asgard was surely a simple appliance. Odin had one of the massive tomes open on the table and he waved them over. They all went except for Loki. He hung back, standing with his arms crossed while he looked out through the intricate grating covering the room's only window.
After everything she'd seen so far, the fact that Asgardians were still using paper books was a surprise and, frankly, a bit of a letdown. Between Tony Stark's holographic computer interfaces and all of SHIELD's digital tech, this was kind of unimpressive. The book looked beautiful, but it was still just a book. Jane glanced back to the window where Loki stood with his back to them and wondered why they would put such a dense grating over the room's biggest light source. How was anybody supposed to read in such a dark place?
Odin turned to a specific page and Jane gasped, immediately taking back all her thoughts on the boring nature of the book. The pages gave off their own light, and it wasn't like the harsh glow of a tablet or computer monitor. This was a soft golden glow, perfect for the brightness level in the room. She vowed that someday soon, she was going to pin Thor down on the magic=science discussion they had at one point if even the books in Asgard were magical.
The All-Father spoke about an alien race existing before the universe took the form they were all familiar with. He turned a few more pages until he came to one with a beautiful, if slightly creepy, illustration of several of the aliens, or dark elves as she learned they were called. Darcy will have a field day when she finds out elves are real, Jane thought absently, transfixed by the moving illustration. The elves all had large pointed ears and blank white faces that looked almost mask-like. In the illustration one of the elves stood before several others, with something red bursting out of his hand that reached up to a golden circle that must represent a sun. The other elves all held long narrow swords in their hands and something about the combination of the deadly weapons and their empty faces as they venerated the object made Jane shudder.
Shrugging off her discomfort, Jane focused more intently on what Odin was saying, trying to wrap her head around the idea of a universe comprised of only dark energy and dark matter. She thought of a few of her fellow scientists who would kill to talk to a species who were existed at the birth of the universe. Jane was one of them but the knowledge that a weaponized version of those dark forces was coursing through her blood dampened her scientific enthusiasm.
Odin related how the dark elves' leader, someone called Malekith, intended to use that weapon to return the universe to its former darkness. His description of a fluid, ever-changing substance perfectly fit the red liquid she found on that other world.
"It seeks out host bodies," Odin said, "drawing strength from their life force."
Like a parasite, she thought.
"After eternities of bloodshed, my father, Bor, triumphed over Malekith's forces, ushering in a new era of peace that lasted thousands of years."
"What happened?" Jane asked, hoping Odin wouldn't view her speaking up as impertinent.
Fixing her with an even gaze, Odin replied, "He killed them all."
"All of them?"
"Only those not slaughtered by Malekith himself," Loki spoke up for the first time.
"What?" she gasped, fear of impertinence forgotten.
Loki stayed with his back to the room, looking out the window. When he spoke, it was with a weary tone, like he'd told the story a thousand times before. "Our people intercepted the Aether before Malekith could use it and hid it away. With his weapon gone and no hope of victory, he made a desperate attempt to lay waste to Asgard's forces by downing all his own airships on the field of battle. The explosions killed all that was left of his army. It brought a swift and rather... decisive end to the war."
"Oh my god," Jane murmured.
Loki turned and began a gradual approach. "For five thousand years, most believed the Aether was destroyed and those who believed otherwise never found it. How did you?"
The accusatory way he asked the question coupled with how he was close enough to loom over her by the time he asked it made her take a nervous gulp before speaking.
"I wasn't looking for it. It was an accident."
"An accident," Loki repeated flatly.
Jane cleared her throat, stalling while she gathered herself and smashed down her nerves. She'd had to defend a theory on the existence of wormholes to the most skeptical group of professors who ever lived to earn her PhD. She could face down one cranky alien prince.
"We picked up signs of anomalous activity in London. My team and I went to investigate one of the sites. I was following some unusual readings to their source when I got pulled through a portal of some kind. It spit me out in this cavern and there was a pillar with a red light inside. I went to take a closer look and that was when it grabbed my hand and wouldn't let go."
She shuddered again at the memory of being pinned in place with no choice but to watch something slither under her skin. It didn't help her nerves any that the longer she talked, the more displeased Loki looked, making her take an unconscious step backward.
"Then everything went black and I woke up back inside the warehouse."
Loki stared at her a moment longer before he burst out laughing, which might have broken the tension except it was a completely joyless sound. If it was possible for a laugh to sound angry, he was doing it.
"Unbelievable," he declared. "I spend my every waking hour for a year searching for the Aether and instead it calls to you, the weakest most pathetic host imaginable."
"Loki, enough," Odin scolded him.
Once again, Jane wasn't paying any attention to Odin. Thor's own brother, whom she had a great deal of respect for up until that moment, had just called her pathetic and weak. To her face.
"Look, pal. I didn't ask for this. Maybe if your people weren't so stingy about sharing their knowledge of Einstein-Rosen connections I wouldn't have to go chasing after such wildly unpredictable phenomena to advance my own work.
"Maybe you shouldn't meddle with forces so far beyond your ken," Loki countered. "After all, if your immediate thought upon being dragged through an unstable interstellar pathway and confronted with a mysterious glowing artifact was to reach out and touch it, then you demonstrate a disturbing lack of appreciation for the powers at work here, to say nothing of your own sense of self-preservation. Even a dwarf would sense infinity stones are not to be trifled with."
She hadn't yet met any dwarfs in Asgard but even so, Jane had the distinct impression the phrase meant Loki had just added 'stupid' to his opinion of her.
"How was I supposed to know some red glowing liquid was an infinity stone? It..." Jane trailed off, realizing what she and Loki both just said. "It's an infinity stone?"
Loki answered with rolled eyes and an exasperated, "Yes."
An icy chill slithered down Jane's neck. She'd read the report about the Tesseract incident and it included everything the Asgardians said about it. "As in one of those artifacts that you said has the power to tear apart the universe?"
"As in."
"And it's inside me."
Loki nodded. Jane had to pause to swallow down the sudden nervousness trying to close up her throat.
"So, then, we have to get it out of me, right? I mean... if it can destroy galaxies then there's not much chance I'll survive this, is there?"
Loki exchanged a silent glance with his father and said nothing. The weight of Thor's hand coming to rest on her shoulder gave her her answer instead.
"We will find a way to save you, Jane. I swear," he promised.
It was meant to be reassuring but his grave tone combined with the grim look on Loki's face that told her he didn't share Thor's confidence just made her heart sink even more.
"You'll find a way," Jane repeated. "Meaning you don't have one now."
"No," Odin said. "We do not."
The sudden cawing of a raven startled Jane so much that if Thor's hand hadn't still been weighing down her shoulder she would have jumped a mile. None of the others were even a little surprised. Odin listened to the bird and left without saying anything else, which Thor and Loki were also not surprised about. The three of them stood a few moments in a profoundly awkward silence.
"So... what now?" she asked.
"Now we find a way to extract the Aether from you," Thor said.
Loki scoffed. "And by we, he means me, of course. Far be it from my brother to put his mind to study."
"Loki-"
"No, please," Loki cut him off. "I wouldn't want you to strain yourself with such intense reading. Besides, since Doctor Foster was so kind as to find the Aether for me, I seem to lately have an abundance of time on my hands. I shall be happy to devote it to helping your friend. Do excuse me." He inclined his head in a mockery of a bow and strode out of the room.
Once he was gone, Jane turned back to Thor. "Okay, what was that about? I mean, I think I've only talked to Loki for a total of twenty minutes before today but I'm pretty sure I didn't make that bad an impression."
Thor sighed, his hand sliding off her shoulder to take hers. "Fret not over him, Jane. The cause of his foul temper has little to do with you. He has done nothing but search for the Aether for the last year and in all that time, he found nothing. I fear you have become a convenient target for his frustration on the matter, as I was before this happened."
"So he's been that pissy with you too?"
"Indeed. Only a few days ago he blamed my extended stay upon Midgard for his inability to find the Aether."
"Well, what does he think you could do about it that he can't?"
Thor chuckled. "I haven't the slightest idea. He never once asked for my help or suggested how I might do so. He also seems convinced that something terrible will happen during the Convergence, though he's not been able to explain what, nor is there a sign of any such trouble."
"Convergence?" Jane repeated. The word caught something in her memory. It was part of Odin's explanation of the dark elves plot to change the universe into dark matter but he didn't explain how.
"Yes, it is very close."
"What is it, though? Your dad didn't really explain it."
Thor smiled and started for the door, still holding her hand which compelled her to follow.
"Every five thousand years..."
~~~|~~~
Far below Asgard's streets, someone stirred. A prisoner held something in his hand. Something dangerous. He took a calming breath before crushing the object in his fingers. When the change happened, it was swift.
Streaks of orange light arced across his body, burning like fire. Everywhere it touched was agony but the prisoner didn't release his grip. By the time smoke began billowing from his body, his fellow captives were bashing their hands against the barrier locking them in, scorching their own hands as they screamed for the guards. A surge of energy burst from the prisoner's body, knocking the other inmates unconscious.
Only then did he begin to scream.
But the prisoner was no longer himself, and the scream emerged as an animalistic roar. He fell to his knees, consumed by the burning magic released from the stone, and pounded the ground with fists that were aflame, trying anything to quell the torturous pain. He didn't stop until the transformation was complete.
Fully changed, he rose to his feet. In place of the prisoner stood a horned creature. He looked down at a body he no longer recognized, feeling the immense power coursing through it. Throwing his head back, he roared. After so many centuries of waiting, the time for victory had come. Victory, and vengeance.